General Electric Company

Robert Edward Deallenbach

Douglas Arthur Lupe

Mehmet Muhittin Dede

David Alan Caruso

Eloy Vincent Emeterio

Martin Francis O'Connor

Oleg Klufas

Ravichandran Pazhur Nair

Christopher Edward Wolfe

William Edward Adis

Thomas Joseph Farineau

Manish Chandra Joshi

Mark Edward Burnett

Michael Earl Montgomery

Kristopher John Frutschy

Kevin Joseph Barb

Robin Carl Schwant

Timothy Scott McMurray

William Hunter Boardman, Iv

Bruce William Brisson

Raymond J Jones

James Harvey Vogan

John James Ligos

Alexander Morson

Paul Walter Dausacker

Allyn Keith Holliday

Afina Lupulescu

Andrzej Korabik

William D Gordon

Noah Matthew Rothe

A rotor assembly is provided. The rotor assembly includes a plurality of blades spaced circumferentially. An airfoil of each blade includes a pressure side, a suction side, a pressure side nub extending from the pressure side, and a suction side nub extending from the suction side. An airfoil length is greater than one of (i) 40 inches, wherein the rotor is configured for operation at about 3600 rpm, and (ii) 48 inches, wherein the rotor is configured for operation at about 3000 rpm. The rotor assembly also includes a plurality of sleeves. Each of the sleeves extends from a first end to a second end. The first end is coupled to the pressure side nub of a first of the blades and the second end is coupled to the suction side nub of an adjacent second of the blades.

Blades and damper sleeves for a rotor assembly

A rotor wheel assembly has a rotor wheel including a plurality of dovetail slots. The rotor wheel assembly includes a bucket closure assembly having a leading auxiliary bucket with a dovetail coupled to a dovetail slot and an integral cover having a back side edge oriented at a first angle relative to the rotor wheel rotation axis. The bucket closure assembly includes a closure bucket having a dovetail coupled to a dovetail slot and an integral cover having a front side and a back side edge, where the back side edge is oriented to a second angle and the front side edge is parallel to the back side edge of the leading auxiliary bucket. The bucket closure assembly includes a trailing auxiliary bucket having a dovetail coupled to a dovetail slot and an integral cover having a front side edge parallel to the back side edge of the closure bucket.

Turbine bucket closure assembly and methods of assembling the same

A rotor wheel assembly includes a rotor wheel having a plurality of dovetail slots spaced circumferentially about a peripheral surface of the rotor wheel. The rotor wheel also has a plurality of notches formed in the peripheral surface. The rotor wheel assembly includes at least one bucket having an integral cover, an airfoil, a dovetail, and a platform having a first surface and an opposite second surface. The first surface of the platform includes a keyway. The keyway has an opposing tapered surface oriented at a first angle relative to the first surface of the platform. Furthermore, the rotor wheel assembly includes a wedge key having first face that is oriented substantially parallel to the first surface of the platform and an opposite second face that is oriented at the first angle relative to the first face, such that the second face is substantially parallel to the taper surface.

System and method for securing axially inserted buckets to a rotor assembly

One embodiment of the invention includes a system for shifting a torsional mode frequency of a rotary device, the system comprising: a plurality of mass rings, each of the plurality of mass rings comprising: a pair of radially-segmented half rings; and at least one channel through each of the radially-segmented half rings, the at least one channel oriented substantially perpendicular to the radial segmentation of the mass ring, whereby the plurality of mass rings may be aligned and secured through the at least one channel of each radially-segmented half ring such that the radial segmentation of each mass ring is staggered with respect to the radial segmentation of an adjacent mass ring.

Torsional mode shifting

Engaging inclined surfaces of an inner ring and an outer ring create wedge action inducing an inward radial force as the rings are forced together longitudinally, holding the adjustor on a rotating body. An inner total arcuate length of each ring is smaller than an outer total arcuate length of a respective target body (inner ring for outer ring, rotating body for inner ring). Arcuate segments of each ring can have inner surfaces with radii of curvature equal to or smaller than that of the target body outer surface, and with a total arcuate length smaller than the circumference of the target body's outer surface.

Torsional resonance frequency adjustor

Embodiments of the present disclosure include a system having a turbine blade segment having a blade and a mounting segment coupled to the blade. The mounting segment is configured to couple to a slot in a rotor, and the mounting segment has a cavity extending radially into the mounting segment.

System for coupling a segment to a rotor of a turbomachine

A wheel dovetail groove with a wheel hook retains blade hooks of mounted blades. Opposed arcuate cut-outs in upper recessed areas of the groove may form an assembly gate. Blade hooks may be inserted into the groove in a first orientation, rotated to a second orientation at the assembly gate, and slid into a predetermined position. Blades may be secured with shims between adjacent bucket dovetails. Blade tip cover blocks may be included to form a cover. All blades may be substantially identical and not need special mounting arrangements at the assembly gate.

Rotor blade mounting

A process and alloy for producing a turbine blade whose properties enable the blade to operate within a steam turbine at maximum operating temperatures of greater than 1300&#xb0; F. (about 705&#xb0; C.). The process includes casting the blade from a gamma prime-strengthened nickel-base superalloy having a composition of, by weight, 14.25-15.75% cobalt, 14.0-15.25% chromium, 4.0-4.6% aluminum, 3.0-3.7% titanium, 3.9-4.5% molybdenum, 0.05-0.09% carbon, 0.012-0.020% boron, maximum 0.5% iron, maximum 0.2% silicon, maximum 0.15% manganese, maximum 0.04% zirconium, maximum 0.015% sulfur, maximum 0.1% copper, balance nickel and incidental impurities, and an electron vacancy number of 2.32 maximum. The casting then undergoes a high temperature solution heat treatment to promote resistance to hold-time cracking. The blade exhibits a combination of yield strength, stress rupture properties, environmental resistance, and cost in steam turbine applications to 1400&#xb0; F. (about 760&#xb0; C.).

Process and alloy for turbine blades and blades formed therefrom

Rhombic shrouded tangential entry buckets are circumferentially applied to the rotor wheel rim of a turbine. A fixture is releasably secured to a lug on each bucket and includes a chamfered surface for engaging a complementary surface on the lug. Upon applying a tangential assembly force, the shroud and airfoil of adjacent buckets are pre-twisted in a rotational direction about a generally radial axis enabling dovetail faces to contact one another notwithstanding interference fit shroud contacting surfaces. The removal of the fixture from the lug enables the bias of the airfoil to rotate the shroud in an opposite direction into final assembly with the shroud edges of adjacent buckets in contact with one another and the dovetail faces thereof in contact with one another.

Methods and systems for assembling shrouded turbine bucket and tangential entry dovetail

Steam turbine bucket covers have forward and aft clearance surfaces on a pressure side edge of the cover, a contact surface between the clearance surfaces and an undercut fillet between the forward clearance surface and the contact surface. The adjoining bucket cover has forward and aft clearance surfaces, a contact surface between the clearance surfaces and an outside radius between the forward clearance surface and the contact surfaces along the suction side edge of the cover. The undercut fillet includes two different radii to minimize or eliminate fretting damage caused by high stresses in the interference fit between the contact surfaces of adjacent covers.

Steep angle turbine cover buckets having relief grooves

The control stage buckets for a steam turbine have airfoils which are hollowed out to form an interior cavity within the airfoil. The cavity opens through the radial inner platform of the bucket and terminates short of the tip of the bucket. The buckets are therefore of reduced weight. This reduced weight causes reduced creep damage in the axially extending dovetails along the rotor rim.

Reduced weight control stage for a high temperature steam turbine

A seal assembly and method for a turbomachine having a rotary member and a stationary member circumscribing the rotary member. The seal assembly comprises an annular-shaped platform on the rotary member so as to be disposed at an outer circumferential region thereof. The platform is supported radially outward from the rotary member so as to project beyond axially-adjacent regions of the rotary member. The platform has a contact region radially separated from the rotary member by a cavity. A sealing member is disposed at a radially inward region of the stationary member, with a portion of the sealing member in rubbing contact with the contact region.

Turbomachine seal assembly and method therefor

A unique finger dovetail pin configuration is provided to attach the buckets of a control stage of a turbine to the rotor wheel. More particularly, as an embodiment of the invention, a bore is provided through the center of the pin to form a hollow pin. The primary benefit of providing a hollow pin configuration is that a passage is defined for the axial flow of steam through the dovetail attachment. For a control stage bucket, this axial flow is desirable to minimize the leakage of steam from the space between the first stage nozzle and bucket, and to provide a source of cooling flow to the forward side of the turbine wheel. Another benefit of the hollow pin is to facilitate removal of the pins when servicing of the high pressure rotor is required.

Hollow finger dovetail pin and method of bucket attachment using the same

Coverplates are disposed to axially overlie end faces of the shanks of buckets and the dovetail connections of the buckets within turbine wheel slots. The coverplates have axially projecting angel wing seals. The coverplates also have balance weights on axial faces thereof opposite the angel wing seals to balance out any bending moments applied to the coverplate resulting from centrifugal forces when the turbine rotor is at speed. Thus, the centers of gravity of the coverplates are located close to or in the plane of the coverplates. A centering slot is provided along an inner face of each dovetail connection for the coverplates. Coverplate retention pins reside in wide sub-slots at the bases of the wheel slots. When the coverplates are secured against axial movement, the retention pins engage in the centering slots of the coverplate dovetails to prevent circumferential movement of the retention pins in the wide sub-slots.

Non-integral balanced coverplate and coverplate centering slot for a turbine

A turbine wheel and bucket assembly comprising a wheel having a peripheral rim machined to include a dovetail shape about the circumference of the rim, interrupted only by a bucket installation slot; and a plurality of buckets installed on the wheel, each bucket having a dovetail portion and blade portion, with the dovetail portion machined to include a complimentary dovetail shape enabling each bucket to be slidably received on the wheel dovetail shape; each bucket having an integral cover at a radial tip of the blade portion, each cover having axially extending surfaces on either side of angled contact surfaces adapted to engage mating contact surfaces of adjacent covers such that the buckets are pretwisted in a first direction. The dovetail shape includes a keyway and a complimentary key is provided on the rim of the wheel, the key receivable within the keyway to prevent rotation of the dovetail portion of the bucket relative to the wheel.

Growing community of inventors

Flat Rock, NC, United States of America

Robert Edward Deallenbach